Comment by plorkyeran

For me it was absolutely an exposure thing. I spent years listening to metal with clean vocals but hating harsh vocals. Then I listened to one of Equilibrium's instrumental songs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DiJw9wIibw) and fell in love. I was disappointed to discover that most of their songs were "ruined" by the growled vocals, but managed to enjoy them in spite of that. Over a bunch of listens I learned to how to appreciate what Equilibrium did with growls, and once I "got" that I started enjoying a lot of other bands that I previously disliked.